It is truly unfortunate that beekeepers such as John Van Blyderveen have tarnished the image of the beekeeping industry with their incessant cry that bee losses are directly attributed to the neonicotinoid pesticide coatings on the seeds that farmers are using.

The progressive beekeeper must have up-to-date knowledge of not only bee nutrition but also bee diseases and the viruses. The symptoms of the half dozen or so known bee viruses are the same as those of pesticide poisoning.
Verification is possible through testing at advanced independent laboratories, for a cost. It's money well spent.
Great effort was made by the stakeholders of the premier's Bee Health Committee to address the past, yet the bee association and the likes of Van Blyderveen have impaired those efforts.

The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food has recently restructured the overseeing of bees and honey. Honey will remain under the food end; overseeing of bees has been moved under animal health and welfare. This for the many beekeepers such as myself who didn't lose a single hive (and there are many out there) is truly a great event.

The Ontario Beekeepers Association, which began this anti-neonic movement, does not speak for all beekeepers in Ontario and never did. Therefore, to maintain the credibility of the industry, independent, advanced thinking beekeepers have formed new organizations, the Independent Commercial Beekeepers and the Independent Small Beekeepers(ISB).